Thursday, May 15, 2014

An adversary complaint is a separate lawsuit filed in the bankruptcy
court. It is assigned its own case number and proceeds independently
of the underlying bankruptcy case. They are filed for a lot of different
reasons. The most common adversary complaints seem to be for
revocation of a discharge, pursuing a preference action, to determine
the extent of a lien, or to recovery property.

The filing of an adversary complaint is just like the filing of
any other lawsuit. The complaint is filed and the clerk issues a
summons. The summons and complaint is then served, usually through
regular U.S. Mail on the defendants. The defendants then have 30 days
to respond to the complaint with some sort of responsive pleading. The
most common mistake is to simply file an answer to the complaint. The
problem with that is there may be other avenues to proceed before
filing an answer. A motion to dismiss or motion to withdraw the
reference may be more appropriate. Timing is everything with the
motions. Once the preliminary motions are filed and ruled on and the
answer is filed the court will set a trial date. In between the filing
of the answer or other responsive pleading the usual discovery
requirements are there. Depositions, requests to produce, or
interrogatories may be sent out or received in preparation of the
trial. Once the trial happens there will be post judgment decisions
that need quick action in order to preserve your rights of appeal or
reconsideration.

Adversary Complaints are not as simple and easy as a debtor may
seem. There are very important decisions that need to be made and even
more important rules to comply with. As soon as someone receives a
summons and complaint they need to immediately seek appropriate legal
advice. We offer a free consultation with an experienced bankruptcy
litigation attorney who will fully analyze your situation and advise
you on your options. If you would like someone to contact you please
email us at jason@jasonaburgess.com or call one of our offices for a
free, 904-354-5065, no obligation conference.

Tuesday, May 13, 2014

The Law Offices of Jason A. Burgess, LLC is proud to announce that Chapter 7 Commercial Bankruptcy Strategies, 2014 ed.: Leading Lawyers on Analyzing the Trends, Strategies, and Risks in Chapter 7 Liquidations (Inside the Minds) was recently published and is hitting store shelves! The book features a few lawyers throughout the United States and of course includes Jason!

The Law Offices of Jason A. Burgess, LLC is proud to announce that Jason has been selected to 2014 SuperLawyers.

About the SuperLawyer Process

Super
Lawyers selects attorneys using a patented multiphase selection
process. Peer nominations and evaluations are combined with third party
research. Each candidate is evaluated on 12 indicators of peer
recognition and professional achievement. Selections are made on an
annual, state-by-state basis.The selections are limited to no more than five (5) percent of lawyers in the state.